The numbers behind Florida's partial economic comeback

The Great Recession officially ended about five years ago. • How much has badly bruised Florida come back during this belabored recovery? How far do we have to go? And how have we changed? • Government number crunchers recently released new calculations. The adjusted figures haven't altered the thrust of the state's economic story: We're gradually getting back to work, but many of the fastest-growing industries have lower-paying jobs. Jeff Harrington, Times staff writer

Where the jobs are

Florida still has fewer construction, manufacturing and information jobs than it had before the recession. A jump in lower-paying tourism, health care and retail jobs gave those industries a bigger slice of the state's economic pie. Despite a focus on government cost-cutting, Florida has about the same percentage of local, state and federal government jobs as it did before the recession.

12,900

Jobs added from January to February

29,600

Jobs added over the past year

41,292

Online job openings advertised in February, most of any Florida metro

10,825

STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) job openings in February. Also the most of any Florida metro

500

Mining and logging jobs, the smallest industry in the region

227,400

Trade, transportation and utility jobs, our biggest industry

56,900

Local construction jobs, up from a recession low of 50,500 but far shy of the June 2006 peak of 95,300 construction workers

Tampa Bay recently relinquished its crown as the biggest job generator among Florida metros. Year over year, it now comes in third after Orlando and Miami.

Hardest-hit local county: Hernando with an unemployment rate of 8.6 percent, fourth-highest in the state. That's down from 9.7 percent a year ago.

Best-performing local county: Tie between Pinellas and Hillsborough, both at 6.3 percent. A year ago, Pinellas was at 7.7 percent and Hillsborough was at 7.6 percent.

Professional and business services led the way by adding 10,000 new jobs in the bay area over the year. Trade, transportation, and utilities came in second with 6,700 new jobs, followed by education and health services with 5,500 jobs.

The Tampa arm of Brazilian steelmaker Gerdau S.A. was cautiously optimistic Friday after the Trump administration took a big step toward a policy Gerdau has been vocally advocating for — higher tariffs on imported steel. "We’re hopeful that President...

Associated PressNEW YORK — Facebook is forging ahead with its messaging app for kids, despite child experts who have pressed the company to shut it down and others who question Facebook’s financial support of some advisers who approved of the app. Me...

Owners of affordable homes in the Tampa Bay region are seeing the biggest gains in equity among the nation’s top 20 housing markets. A bay area home now worth $110,000 rose 20 percent in value over the past year while a house now worth $337,400 incr...

The anonymous letter described a possible love affair at the top of the local jobs center. President and CEO Edward Peachey was in a romantic relationship with top administrator Haley Loeun, it said.It described how Loeun was seen at a conference co...

Outback Steakhouse and Carrabba’s Italian Grill have become household names in casual dining. Now, their parent company, Tampa-based Bloomin’ Brands is taking the "dining" part out in a concept that it’s bringing to Tampa Bay for the first time. A ne...

If you bought or sold a house in Tampa Bay last year, you were a player in one of Florida’s hottest real estate markets.Even though prices eased a bit from their torrid pace in 2016, the median cost of a single family home shot up 11 percent. That’s ...

Every year, millions of people play the Florida Lotto. Their chances of winning are about as great as those of being struck by a comet. Fewer than 12,000 enter a much lesser known lottery that also is run by the state. Yet the odds of winning are vas...

ST. PETERSBURG — Neither the Lutherans who first occupied the 4300 block of Central Avenue, nor the evangelical congregation that followed could ever have imagined tree houses sprouting in their church sanctuary.Yet that’s one of the plans of new own...

TAMPA — ConnectWise co-founder David Bellini won’t be prosecuted on a drug trafficking charge filed by Tampa police this week, the Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office announced Thursday. The county’s top prosecutor instead applauded police for helpi...

ST. PETERSBURG — The Tampa Bay Rays’ stadium may be named for PepsiCo’s Tropicana orange juice, but that’s not stopping the baseball team from switching its pouring rights to Coke.The Rays said Wednesday the ballpark would begin serving Coca-Cola pro...